Safari Restaurant

Was unable to eat here because they were out of food. That is actually the third time that has happened to me at an African restaurant (why don’t they just close when that happens?!). But my one star here is not simply because they ran out of food. It’s for the horribly awkward experience of entering the restaurant, being «seated», and, eventually, finding out they don’t have any food. The other times this has happened at other African restaurants, the staff were at least nice, albeit confusing, while they slowly revealed to us that they have no food to sell.
My husband, daughter and I walk into this place at like 6:45 pm on a Friday night. Immediately I want to turn right back around and leave because there is absolutely no one in there and the atmosphere is of the variety I hate the most: blank walls, eyeball-​searing bright paint, and lighting that I’m fairly certain was chosen to simulate the experience of dining on the surface of the sun.
We gaze across the restaurant and see the sole employee (maybe owner? not sure), a remarkably unfriendly looking woman who just… stares at us. As if to say, «Why are you here?». After a long, uncomfortable silence we finally ask her, should we seat ourselves, or??? She just shrugged and then vaguely gestured toward the small cluster of tables in the center of the place. We very awkwardly sat down. Did I mention that, in addition to empty, bare and scorchingly bright, it was also DEAD SILENT in there? This made it all the more unbearable as the employee/​owner in question continued to sit, not 7 feet away from us, just staring off into space, for a solid 8 minutes after her gracious unspoken welcome for us to seat ourselves.
FINALLY, after what seemed like an eternity, she silently dropped off some menus and glasses of water. She came back several minutes later, and, in her first spoken word to us since entering, asked what we wanted. We attempted to place our order of several entrees, and she says simply, «We’re out of that.» Quickly my husband and I confer, pick out a few different things and tell her what we’d like instead, and again, she just says, «We’re out of that.» We make one more attempt to go through the menu as she stands there, looking she’d rather kill herself than continue to wait on us, and finally, after this third attempt we just say, Look, what DO you have available? «Nothing, we are out of food, except for some spaghetti and meatballs in the back.»
Let me repeat that for you: NOTHING, WE ARE OUT OF FOOD, EXCEPT FOR SOME SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS IN THE BACK.
What??? Why??? Why did you seat us then? Why did you bring us waters? Why did you let us go through the menu attempting to order different things, knowing full well you didn’t have any of them to serve?! Why would we want the spaghetti and meatballs you «have in the back». That makes it sound as if you don’t even know where it came from!
Again, this is the THIRD African restaurant I’ve gone to where some variation of this exact experience happened. It’s very mysterious and singularly awkward. Especially the part where you stand up after all that, say, «Well, thanks for the water. I guess we’ll…try…another…time?» And then scurry out, in this case, having NEVER been more relieved to get out of a restaurant.

I really wanted to support this small unique place and when I read a good review in WW, I went to check it out. Service was distant, they only had rice and spaghetti they said? Just plain rice and noodles, in the middle of the afternoon.

Wanted some adventure and it’s not far from home. Place was empty. soon had service, some questions answered, took our order. A young African man gave Abby advice on eating her dish. limited menu. the goat was okay – I was hoping to have goat here – not much seasoning & a little overcooked. the cardamon rice was tasty. Abby had an interesting spinach dish & a clump of cooked cornmeal. Low key service

Great food, delicious options, and clean setting! I can eat here everyday. Don’t be alarmed– this is not the classic restaurant, it’s family run. Place your order upfront, sit and enjoy the food. Pay upfront again.
Enjoy!

Very Authentic and Tasty Food. We went here for dinner and we were very impressed. The food was unique and delicious. This restaurant is for people who want to experience a rich culture and try excellent food with most of the flavors you’ve probably never tried before. The service was top-​notch and very friendly. It was the high-​point of our night.
Do not get this restaurant confused with Towfiq which used to be named Safari, was located at 3939 Martin Luther King Blvd, and is now out of business. I suspect by some of the reviews on Unilocal that Towfiq wasn’t near as good as this restaurant.

First time eating Somali food. The service was outstanding, very friendly and accommodating. Helped us navigate the menu and make choices. The goat meat is very well cooked (so tender and not fatty), and the rice is outstanding. Meals are served with juice instead of water. Cornmeal stuff is ok, maybe I wasn’t sure how to eat it, but I’d recommend the rice over the cornmeal (matza?).